THE CONSENT OF THE MAJORITY REQUIRED TO PASS LAWS. 273 Whence, according to different traditions, or different reasons and circumstances of things, several churches varied in points of order and discipline. The pope, then, could not impose his traditions, laws, or customs, upon any church. Ifhe attempted it, he was liable to suffer a re- pulse; as is notorious in the case when Pope Victorwould (although rather as a doctor than as a lawgiver) have reduced the churches of Asia to conformwith the Roman in the time of celebrating Easter, wherein he found not only stout resistance, but sharp reproof. In St Cyprian's time, every bishop had a free power, according to his discretion, to govern his church ; and it was deemed a tyrannical . enterprise for one to prescribe to another, or to require obedience from his colleagues; as elsewhere, by many clear allegations out of that holy man, we haveshowed. " For none of us," says he, " makes himself a bishop of bishops, or by a tyrannical terror compels his colleagues to a necessity of obedience, since every bishop, according to the licence of his own liberty and power, has his own freedom, and can no more be judged by another than he himself can judge an- other."' If any new law were then introduced or rule determined for com- mon practice, it was done by the general agreement of bishops, or of a preponderant multitude among them, to whom the rest, out of modesty and peaceableness, yielded compliance; according to that saying of the Roman clergy to St Cyprian, upon occasion of the de- bate concerning the manner of admitting lapsed persons to commu- nion, " That decree cannot be valid that has not the consent of the majority."9 The whole validity of such laws or rules, indeed, wholly stoodupon presumption of such consent; by which the common liberty and inte- rest were secured. 2. After that, by the emperor's conversion, the church, enjoying secular protection and encouragement, reduced itself, as into a closer union and freer communication of parts, so into a greater uniformity of practice; especially by means of great synods, wherein, the go- vernors and representatives of all churches being called unto them, and presumed to concur in them, were ordained sanctions, taken to oblige all.' The pope had, indeed, a greater stroke than formerly, as having the first place in order, or "privilege of honour" (orpo -e7a rip/iis), Neque enim quisquam nostrum episcopum se esse episcoporum constituit, aut ty- rannico terrore ad obsequendi necessitatem colleges suos adigit, quando habeat omnis episcopus pro licentia libertatis et potestatis sum arbitrium proprium; tamque judicari ab alio non possit, quam nec ipse potest alterum judicareCypr. in Conc. Carthag. 2 Quoniam nec firmum decretum potest esse, quod non plurimorum videbitur ha- buisse consensum.Cler. Rom. ad Cypr., Ep. xxxi. s Idem enim omnes credimur operati, in quo deprehendimur eadem omnes censures et disciplines consensione sociati. Cler. Rom. ad Cypr., Ep. xxxi. VOL. I. 18
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